Examining Relationships Between GRBAS Ratings and Acoustic, Aerodynamic and Patient-Reported Voice Measures in Adults With Voice Disorders.
Robert Brinton Fujiki, Susan L Thibeault
PMID 33750626WHAT IT FOUND
Clinician ratings of voice quality correlated significantly with acoustic and patient-reported measures, but the relationships were weak.
No single objective test or questionnaire captured the same information as a GRBAS rating. Multiple measures remain necessary for a complete voice evaluation.
Key findings
01GRBAS ratings correlated significantly with acoustic, aerodynamic, and patient-reported measures, but most correlation coefficients were small.
02Jitter and shimmer showed the strongest correlations with overall voice quality ratings, while subglottal pressure correlated best with breathiness.
03The Glottal Function Index correlated less strongly with GRBAS ratings than the Vocal Handicap Index, despite being a shorter tool.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The study used retrospective database records, so rater reliability was not measured directly, though all raters were voice specialists. The participants were predominantly mildly to moderately dysphonic, so results may not apply to patients with severe voice disorders. The cross-sectional design limits the ability to see how these relationships change during treatment.
Declared interests
No specific funding sources or conflicts of interest are declared in the provided text.
The easy way to misread this
Do not interpret significant correlations as high agreement. The r values were mostly low, meaning that a patient's acoustic test score or questionnaire rating often does not match the clinician's auditory-perceptual rating. One measure alone is not a proxy for another.